A Washington school district is sending its bus drivers to Idaho to refuel in a bid to save up to $100 per tank as fuel prices soar.
The East Valley School District spent around $45,000 on diesel fuel in the month of April - a $16,700 increase compared to the April before, they told The Spokesman-Review.
'We’re just trying to survive, because we have to buy the diesel,' Neale Rasmussen, the district’s chief financial officer, told the outlet.
'So if we can’t save the money there, we’re going to have to make cuts in other areas just to save for the diesel.'
The district runs 34 buses, including six with 100-gallon tanks and 28 with 50 to 60-gallon tanks. The buses have to traverse 100 square miles of the district.
These days, roughly one-fourth of the drivers are detouring across the border to Idaho to save money, which could amount to $100 per tank saved, district officials said.
Drivers are using their radios to keep each other in the loop about which stations have the better deal, all playing a role in cutting down on the district's fuel costs.
'That’s what’s just killing school districts right now, you’re always in the red with fuel, even in a regular year,' Michelle Monzingo, East Valley’s interim transportation director, told The Spokesman Review.
Neale Rasmussen, the chief financial officer of the East Valley School District, said it spent $48,000 on diesel fuel last month, which is up more than $16,000 compared to the April before
'We’re just trying to survive, because we have to buy the diesel,' Rasmussen said
'It’s just been a savings all across the board from what I can tell at such an early stage,' she said of the Idaho detour.
The district's bus barn is located three miles from AmeriMart in Post Falls, the closest gas station in Idaho. East Farms Elementary, the district's easternmost school, is one mile from the gas station, The Spokane Review said.
The district is lucky to be located so close to the Washington-Idaho border, giving it easy access to cheaper fuel. It is the only district in Spokane County that borders Idaho, The Spokesman Review reported.
Prior to January, the state-issued cards issued to drivers to refuel would only work at certain pumps, but that was dropped, allowing them easier access to find cheaper gas.
The average price in Spokane County is currently $6.51 for diesel, which is up from $4.37 last year, according to AAA. The average diesel cost in Idaho is $5.62, which is up from $3.48 it was at the same time last year.
The nearly $1 difference per gallon adds up, the district said.
Although the East Valley School District doesn't have to pay federal taxes on gas, it does have to pay state taxes on it, which comes out to around 55 cents per gallon in Washington and 33 cents in Idaho, The Spokesman Review said.
The idea of crossing the border for fuel came from the bus drivers, Monzingo told the outlet.
The AmeriMart in Post Falls, Idaho, is a frequent stop for many drivers for cheap gas, which can be around $1 cheaper than in Washington
The Maverick gas station in Spokane County is often much more expensive than if drivers went to Idaho
'They’re paying such close attention to the prices of the fuel, so they’re really communicating with each other,' she said.
In her 28 years working in school district transportation, she said she's never seen anything like it, and praised the drivers' creativity to fix the ongoing problem.
Gas prices are expected to rise this week as Memorial Day approaches on Monday.
Prices are already high due to the conflict in Iran, as the Strait of Hormuz blockages continue to affect fuel prices, as 20 percent of the world's oil passes through there.
Tuesday marks the third consecutive day gas prices have increased.
On Monday, the national average bumped up from $4.50 to $4.51. It increased to $4.53 for regular fuel on Tuesday. The price is up nearly 50 cents compared to a month ago.